Overview

Welcome

Welcome to the subscribers’ area of the website. If you have completed the induction training, you now have access to all the resources you need to run the Common Good Schools programme. If you have signed up for the programme and are awaiting training, the resources will be available to you as soon as your training is complete.

The Common Good Schools programme has been created by Together for the Common Good: a small charity working to strengthen the bonds of social trust and designed in partnership with teachers and other educational professionals.

At Together for the Common Good we see ourselves as a partner rather than a provider and we’re delighted that you are partnering with us. We want a relationship with you and your school in the same way that you will make relationships with local groups and institutions in your school’s neighbourhood.

Our work is to call people to fulfil their vocational responsibility by putting Common Good principles into practice and working with others of different opinions and backgrounds in shared purpose. Your school’s initiative is best understood as a progression, a journey, which will develop over time rather than a one-off event.

Students should see an obvious benefit from all three components of the programme (lessons, assemblies and community engagement activities) and the change witnessed needs to be tangible. All involved should be left with a sense of pride in their school and community.

Together for the Common Good staff are with you every step of the way. Don’t hesitate to be in touch for support and guidance.

What is the Common Good?

The Common Good principles

Induction Training

Impact on students and school

What is the Common Good?

The Common Good is an ancient idea that resonates across many cultural traditions, from shalom to Aristotle. This programme draws from the Christian understanding of the Common Good, rooted in Catholic Social Teaching.

However, putting the Common Good into practice requires a coherent set of principles. Together for the Common Good has developed a simple framework called ‘Common Good Thinking’. These principles are universal and yet are rooted in the gospel.

The Common Good is much more than an idea, it is a rigorous concept that leads to human flourishing. For the sake of clarity, this is the definition underpinning these resources:

“The Common Good is the shared life of a society in which everyone can flourish - as we act together in different ways that all contribute towards that goal, enabled by social conditions that mean every single person can participate. We create these conditions and pursue that goal by working together across our differences, each of us taking responsibility according to our calling and ability.”

The Common Good principles

At the heart of Common Good Thinking is a coherent framework of principles to put into practice in our every day lives. Click each principle below to learn a little more about it.

The Common Good Principles weave throughout these resources. The table opposite
shows where they are covered in each lesson: Students associate the principles with
the icons in the slides, on the postcards, stickers and poster. Download a copy of the table HERE

The Common Good is the shared life of a society in which everyone can flourish - as we act together in different ways that all contribute towards that goal, enabled by social conditions that mean every single person can participate.

We create these conditions and pursue that goal by working together across our differences, each of us taking responsibility according to our calling and ability.

The Common Good is built as people participate freely in the shared activities that generate it.

It is not a utopian ideal and cannot, by definition, be imposed.

Every person is worthy of respect simply by virtue of being human.

All human beings are of equal worth in the eyes of God.

Work is more than just a way to make a living – it is good for our humanity, because through work we participate in God’s great creative plan.

People matter more than things: each human life has value, from the youngest to the oldest, from the weakest to the strongest.

Induction Training

All staff who will be involved with Common Good Schools - teaching lessons, delivering assemblies, facilitating community engagement activities and members of SLT - are warmly invited to attend the Induction Training. Here are the documents you will require during the training session.

Community Mapping Sheet

Common Good Schools Lessons Overview

Please print a copy of the Community Mapping Sheet and bring it along.

Impact on students & school

We know that having a positive impact on students is important to your school. It’s also important to us at Together for the Common Good.

As your partner, we want to equip you with tools to help you measure impact. These will include:

Student health check card which allows students to track and celebrate their own progress.
ENTRY and EXIT questionnaires for students to complete. These can be accessed via the Lesson 1 and Lesson 10 slide presentations.
Baseline and Impact surveys completed by staff during Induction Training and towards the end of the ten-week programme.

We’re very happy to share the information we gather with you.

At certain points of the programme, you will be asked to share your good news stories, with T4CG, from your community engagement. However, please don’t wait to be asked!

We’d love to see your photographs and vox pop video interviews with community partners, staff and students on your website and social media platforms.

Where appropriate, please use the hashtag #CommonGoodSchools and tag us - @T4CG on Twitter, t4cg_insta on Instagram, TogetherForTheCommonGoodUK on Facebook , Together for the Common Good on LinkedIn

When you are looking for community partners, consider a local journalist. Partner with them to share news of your positive progress. It might be the beginning of a community magazine, blog or podcast.